PIRATES

Setting the tone in the early innings has seemed to make a pretty significant difference for the Pirates this season. In games in which they've scored first, they're 14-6. In games when the opposition scores first, the Pirates are 2-10. They've managed to take the lead first just once during this five-game losing streak and that ended in a 4-2 loss after a Dennis Santana blown save in the ninth inning. On every other occasion, they've played from behind. 

I asked Don Kelly what the key is to setting the tone earlier and avoiding situations where the offense is forced to rally back late: "It's something that's important. I think going into a game and understanding they're prepared, understanding what the other team is going to do and having that team mentality of an approach starting from the first inning. Not that we haven't, but I think when we've been successful over the course of games is when we've shown that pass-the-baton approach, going the other way, and just sticking to that as we go through the season is going to be a big key to how we score a lot of runs."